Simon Says ...

Luke 7.36-8.3 Some words from the Gospel reading this morning:   Jesus ‘went on through cities and villages proclaiming and bringing the good news of the kingdom of God.   The twelve were with him, as well as some women’. It’s a great pleasure to be with you this morning.   My thanks to Simon for his invitation, and to you all for your welcome.   I bring greetings to the Cathedral of the Peak from your Cathedral Church in Derby, where we pray for you regularly.   I’m here, I think, because one of the roles I have is as the Director of Curate Training in the Diocese.   So I have been involved with Sue, not least as she prepares to be ordained priest at the end of the month.   I want to say a few things this morning to help us all prepare for that new ministry.   At the end of the Gospel reading this morning we hear that Jesus ‘went on through cities and villages proclaiming and bringing the good news of the kingdom...

Isaiah 50.4-9a ; Mark 8.27-38 So there I was, in a cafe on a Saturday afternoon nursing a beer.   I was there with two old friends, to who m I was very close.   One had written a reference for me for whatever they called BAPs in those days, but neither were Christians.   And then the husband of one of my wife's colleagues came across.   He was, shall we say, less than sober and a bit aggressive with it.   'So why do you waste your time working for the church?' was his opening gambit.   A perfect opportunity for witness, you might have thought.   So, of course, I blew it.   I was absolutely speechless, I could think of nothing to say that would answer him, and that would say something to my friends.   And then Andrew, who I'd lived with for two years as a student, piped up with a most eloquent account of how my faith and my values were intertwined; and how my compassion and my care for others were deeply rooted in m...

Isaiah 35.4-7a ; Mark 7.24-37 Right at the beginning of the summer, before the schools had even broken up for the holidays, there were signs in the shops saying ‘Back to School’.   A little cruel, perhaps for those whose summer holidays had not even started yet.   Now however, the time is upon us, it is back to school.   For Christians, however, there is no gap.   It is always back to school.   There is always something to learn.   The church is, or at least it should be, a school for Christians, a place where we learn. For those following Jesus, as he wandered around Israel and Palestine, this would have been familiar.   Jewish Rabbis had disciples who followed them everywhere.   The disciples were learning how to live faithfully as God’s people.   They did this first of all by learning the scriptures by heart.   When they had done this, the more difficult task began – to learn how to live in the light of th...